Rolling mills



April 4, 1967 D. STUBBS ETA L ROLLING MILLS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 2, 1964 INVENTOQIS DENNIS STUBBS BY KENNETH C. HANSON THUR Pvr-rouawav April 4, 1 7 D. STUBBS ETAL 3, ,0

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Invamwozs DENMSSTUBBS & Bv KENNETHC.HANSON THEIR United States Patent 3,312,096 ROLLING MELS Dennis Stubbs and Kenneth Charles Hanson, Shefield, England, assignors to Davy and United Engineering Company Limited, Yorkshire, England Filed Oct. 2, 1964, fier. No. 401,073 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Oct. 3, 1963, 39,069/63 Claims. (Cl. 72-238) This invention relates to rolling mills, and in particular to improvements in means for facilitating the changing of the work roll assemblies of such a mill.

The present invention provides a rolling mill stand comprising a pair of housings having windows therein, upper and lower back-up roll assemblies comprising upper and lower back-up rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower back-up bearing chocks respectively, upper and lower work roll assemblies comprising upper and lower work rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower work roll bearing chocks respectively, the work roll assemblies being nested one in the other so that they are removable as a unit on wheels or the like carried on one of the pairs of work roll chocks, rails or the like, extending parallel with the roll axes, being located within the mill stand, to remain there during rolling, and means for adjusting the height of the rails between an inoperative position in which they are out of contact with the wheels and an operative position in which they support the work roll assemblies with the lower work roll clear of the lower back-up roll.

In one form of the invention, the rails or the like engage wheels which are mounted on the lower work roll assemblies. Conveniently, the rails or the like may be raised by hydraulic means mounted in a lower backing roll assembly.

In another form of the invention the rails are formed as integral parts of links, the links being arranged at their upper ends with means engaging upper surfaces of roll balance links on the chocks of the upper backing roll assembly, whereby, by operation of the roll balance mechanisms acting on the said upper backing roll assemblies, the links may be raised thus bringing the rails into engagement with the said wheels.

The invention will be more readily understood from the following description, given by way of example only, reference being made to the accompanying drawings of which:

FIGURE 1 is an end elevation of a four-high rolling mill stand, the right-hand half of the drawing being a section on the line 1-1 of FIGURE 2,

FIGURE 2 is a front elevation of the mill, the view being taken in the direction of the arrow II in FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 3 is a view of a roll-change rig used in conjunction with the rnill shown in FIGURES 1 and 2,

FIGURE 4 is a diagrammatic view of a rolling mill showing the roll carriage of FIGURE 3 in position for changing the work rolls of the mill,

FIGURE 5 is an end elevation of a mill showing an alternative form of the invention,

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary view, on an enlarged scale, of the upper portion of the link and its associated parts shown in FIGURE 5, and

FIGURE 7 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 6, but showing the lower portion of the link.

Referring to FIGURES 1 and 2, there are shown two housings 10 which are joined together near their upper extremities by distance pieces 12, and which are secured to foundation structure 13 (FIGURE 4) by bolts, the axes of which are indicated at 14, FIGURE 1.

Each of the housings it) has a window 16 in which are 3,312,696 Patented Apr. 4, 1967 mounted chocks arranged to support the roll-necks of the rolls of the mill, wearing plates 17 being provided between the chocks and the housings.

Roll-necks 18 of an upper backing roll 20 are mounted for rotation in bearing chocks 22, supported on roll-balance links 24 powered by hydraulic means (not shown) and mounted in the housings 10. A screwdown mechanism, indicated generally at 28, is provided to efiect vertical downward adjustment of the chocks 22 and hence the upper backing roll 2! to adjust the roll gap.

Roll-necks 30 of a lower backing roll 32 are mounted for rotation in bearing chocks 34 which are supported on sledges 37, having on their lower surfaces a member 3% which is arranged to slide on a plate 3% located at the bottom of the housing Window. At each side of, and integral with, the sledge 37 are arms 37b having in their lower surfaces members 370 which are arranged to run on guides (not shown) when it is required to change both the backing roll assemblies and the work roll assemblies simultaneously. Packing pieces 35 are located between the sledge 37 and the chocks 34 to accommodate various size rolls.

The upper back-up roll chocks 22 are provided with extensions 33 which are located between the housings 10 and retainer plates 36 secured to the housings it), thus preventing lateral movement of the roll 20; similarly, extensions on the chocks 34 are located between the housings in and retainer plates 35 to prevent lateral movement of roll 32.

Roll-necks it? and 42 of upper and lower work rolls 44 and 46 are mounted for rotation in pairs of upper and lower work roll bearing chocks 4-8 and 50 respectively, the rolls 44 and 46 being driven by suitable motors (not shown) through couplings 53. It will be seen from FIG- URE 1, that each upper work roll chock 48 is nested between upwardly extending arms 51 of the associated chock Sti, this being to allow the work roll assemblies comprising chocks, together with their associated rolls, to be removed together as one unit from the mill.

Abutting extensions d7 of the chocks 48 are rams 54 operating in cylinders 49 formed in the arms 51 of the chocks 50. By admission of pressurized fluid from a source (not shown) but carried by the chocks 50 into the cylinders 49, the rams 54 may be moved upwardly thus raising the chocks 48 and so maintaining the work roll id in contact with its associated backing roll 29.

Mounted within the lower backing roll chocks 34- are rams 66 operating in cylinders 62 formed in the chocks 34', the rams dd abutting under-surfaces 59 of vertically adjustable rails 58 extending parallel to the axis of the roll and having upper rail surfaces 57. Wheels 56 are rotatably carried by the lower work-roll chocks above the rail surfaces 57.

Referring now to FIGURES 3 and 4, a roll carriage 66 is movable towards and away from the non drive side of mill by means of a cable 72 attached to a member 71 on the carriage 66 and passing around pulleys 74 mounted in blocks 75. The carriage 66 is provided with wheels 68, having axles 69, engaging tracks 70. The pulleys may be operated by any suitable means.

Mounted on the wheels 6% is a frame upon which is mounted a laterally traversible carriage 76 having upwardly extending portions on upper ends of which are rails 77 which, when the carriage 66 is adjacent the mill, are aligned with and form extensions of the rails 58 in their operative position. The carriage 76 is mounted on wheels 86 engaging tracks 88 on the frame and may be traversed in a direction parallel to the pass line of the mill by means of a piston 80, attached at its free end to a lug 82 on the carriage 76, and operating in a cylinder 84.

Upon the traversible carriage 76, are located two roll withdrawal assemblies, only one of which is shown in FIGURE 3. The roll withdrawal assembly comprises a crosshead 90 screw-threaded onto a shaft 91, which is driven by a motor 92, through suitable gearing 93, FIG- URE 4. The crosshead 90 runs on guides 94 secured to the upwardly extending portions 75 of the carriage 76.

In operation, when it is required to change the work roll assemblies of the mill, the upper backing roll chocks 22, together with the roll 20, are raised to their uppermost position by the roll balance links 24, and the rails 58 are raised to their operative position in which they engage the wheels 56 and support the work roll assemblies with roll 46 clear of roll 32.

The carriage 66 carrying a new set of work roll assemblies 44', 46, 48' and 50', is moved towards the rolling mill by means of the cable 72. The carriage 66 is secured to the rolling mill housing 10 by means of latches (not shown) to prevent movement of the carriage during the roll change operation. The rails 77 thus abut the rails 58 mounted in the housings 10. The motor 92 is set in motion causing rotation of the shaft 91 which will move the crosshead 90 towards the roll assemblies to be removed. The crosshead 90 is then secured to the roll assemblies.

The crosshead 90 is retracted by reversing the motor 92 thus moving the roll assemblies along the rails 58, through the housing windows 16 and onto the rails 77 of the traversible carriage 76.

The carriage 76 is then moved along the track 88 by operation of the piston 80 in the cylinder 84 so that the new assemblies 44', 46', 48 and 50 are brought in line with the housing window 16, whereafter the second crosshead may be moved towards, and attached to, the roll assemblies which may then be inserted into the mill. The rails 58 are lowered to their inoperative position before rolling.

An alternative form of the invention will now be described with reference to FIGURES 5 to 7, parts being common to both embodiments being given like reference numerals, and not being further described.

A pair of links 98 are provided at the sides of each housing window and are mounted for vertical movement between a lower inoperative position in which they engage lower stops 104 formed by recesses in the chocks 34 and an upper operative position in which they engage stops 96 mounted at the top of each housing window.

The links 98 are provided at their upper ends with lugs 100 which are arranged to engage the roll balance links 24, and at their lower ends with lugs 102, secured to the link 98 by screws 102A (FIGURE 7) and which constitute the rails designated by the numeral 58 in the previous embodiment.

It will be seen that whereas the rams 54 in the previous embodiment were located in the upwardly extending arms 51 of the chocks 50 and abutted extensions 47 of the chocks 48, in this arrangement they are located in the centre portions of the chocks 50 and abut the undersurfaces of the chocks 48.

In operation, the top backing roll 20 is raised clear of the upper work roll 44 by the roll balance links 24 until the upper surface of the roll balance links 24 abuts the under surfaces of the lugs 100. As the chocks 22 and the roll 20 continue to move upwardly, the links 98 will also be raised, such that the rails 102 clear the stops 104 and engage the wheels 56 mounted on the chocks 50.

The lugs 100 will then abut the stops 96, the stops 96 being so arranged that when they are contacted by the lugs 100, the rails 104 will beat the same height as the extensions 77 of the traversible carriage 76. By this time the lower work roll chocks 48 and 50, together with their associated rolls 44 and 46 will be raised clear of the lower backing roll 32, with the wheels 56 resting upon the rails 102, whereafter the work roll assemblies may be removed from the mill in the manner previously described.

It will be seen therefore, that in this embodiment, the

normal rolling mill roll balance mechanism may be used to raise the rails by which the work roll assemblies are raised.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, we have explained the principle and operation of our invention and have illustrated and described what we consider to represent the best embodiment thereof. However, we desire to have it understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described.

We claim:

1. A rolling mill stand comprising a pair of housings having windows therein, upper and lower back-up roll assemblies comprising upper and lower back-up rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower back-up bearing chocks respectively, upper and lower Work roll assemblies comprising upper and lower work rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower work roll bearing chocks respectively, the workroll assemblies being nested one in the other so that they are removable as a unit on Wheels or the like carried on one of the pairs of work roll chocks, said lower back-up roll assembly being fixed in the housing, screwdown means for forcing the upper back-up roll downwardly to adjust the roll gap, roll balance means arranged to urge the upper back-up roll upwards, rails or the like, extending parallel with the roll axes, being located within the mill standyto remain their during rolling, and means for adjusting the height of the rails between an inoperative position in which they are out of contact with the wheels and an operative position in which they support the work roll assemblies with the lower work roll clear of the lower back-up roll.

2. A rolling mill stand comprising a pair of housings having windows therein, upper and lower back-up roll assemblies comprising upper and lower back-up rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower back-up bearing chocks respectively, upper and lower work roll assemblies comprising upper and lower work rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower work roll bearing chocks respectively, the work roll assemblies being nested one in the other so that they are removable as a unit on wheels 'or the like carried on one of the pairs of work roll chocks, rails or the like, extending parallel with the roll axes, being located within the mill stand, to remain there during rolling, piston and cylinder assemblies located in the lower back-up chocks for adjusting the height of the rails between an inoperative position in which they are out of contact with the wheels and an operative position in which they support the work roll assemblies with the lower work roll clear of the lower back-up roll.

3. A rolling mill stand comprising a pair of housings having windows therein, upper and lower back-up roll assemblies comprising upper and lower back-up rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower back-up bearing chocks respectively, upper and lower work roll assemblies comprising upper and lowerwork rolls having their ends rotatably supported in pairs of upper and lower work roll bearing chocks respectively, the work roll assemblies being nested one in the other so that they are removable as a unit on wheels or the like carried on one of the pairs of work roll chocks, rails or the like, extending parallel with the roll axes, being located within the mill stand, to remain there during rolling, and means for adjusting the height of the rails between an inoperative position in which they are out of contact with the wheels and an operative position in which they support the work roll assemblies with the lower work roll clear of the lower back-up roll, and in which the rails are carried on links located on either side of each housing window for vertical movement and arrangement roll balance means, which are arranged to engage the links as they move upwards from the rolling position.

5. A nolling mill stand according to claim 3 including upper and lower stops for contacting the links, positioned to locate the rails in their operative and inoperative positions respectively.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,171,304 3/1965 Sims et a] 72-238 FRANCIS S. HUSAR, Primary Examiner. ANDREW R. JUHASZ, Examiner. 

3. A ROLLING MILL STAND COMPRISING A PAIR OF HOUSINGS HAVING WINDOWS THEREIN, UPPER AND LOWER BACK-UP ROLL ASSEMBLIES COMPRISING UPPER AND LOWER BACK-UP ROLLS HAVING THEIR ENDS ROTATABLY SUPPORTED IN PAIRS OF UPPER AND LOWER BACK-UP HEARING CHOCKS RESPECTIVELY, UPPER AND LOWER WORK ROLL ASSEMBLIES COMPRISING UPPER AND LOWER WORK ROLLS HAVING THEIR ENDS ROTATABLY SUPPORTED IN PAIRS OF UPPER AND LOWER WORK ROLL BEARING CHOCKS RESPECTIVELY, THE WORK ROLL ASSEMBLIES BEING NESTED ONE IN THE OTHER SO THAT THEY ARE REMOVABLE AS A UNIT ON WHEELS OR THE LIKE CARRIED ON ONE OF THE PAIRS OF WORK ROLL CHOCKS, RAILS OR THE LIKE, EXTENDING PARALLEL WITH THE ROLL AXES, BEING LOCATED WITHIN THE MILL STAND, TO REMAIN THERE DURING ROLLING, AND MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE HEIGHT OF THE RAILS BETWEEN AN INOPERATIVE POSITION IN WHICH THEY ARE OUT OF CONTACT WITH THE WHEELS AND AN OPERATIVE POSITION IN WHICH THEY SUPPORT THE WORK ROLL ASSEMBLIES WITH LOWER WORK 